On Sunday, according to the newspapers, a crowd as large as the one that gathered for the Allies' entrance into Paris in 1944 clogged the Place de la République and the boulevards leading up to it.   As so often happens in our lives, my weekend was a combination of rapt attention to the unfolding events and the simple joys of a family reunion as I spent the weekend in Marseille with the Sudour family.

I have been fascinated by the subtleties of the reactions among the French to the terrorist attack and its aftermath.  Some French people refused to go to the "manifestation," their way of protesting against the politicization of the tragedy as the chattering classes debated what game Sarkozy was playing and whether Marine Le Pen (head of the very right wing anti-immigrant party) would be invited and, if invited, would attend.  Others, while saddened by the deaths, were a bit astonished at the uproar over "Charlie Hebdo" a magazine that many consider merely adolescent and in bad taste.   It was also interesting that so little attention was paid in the French press to the slaughter of Jews at the grocery store relative to the obsession about the cartoonists and editor of the weekly newspaper.  Whatever the subtleties, however, all have been engaged in a fierce debate about what freedom of expression and that indefinable (to outsiders) French notion of "laicity" really means.  To take down "Charlie Hebdo" was about as close as you could get psychologically to taking down the Twin Towers -- it was a "défi", a challenge, like throwing down the gauntlet.  And it will take this country a long time to figure it all out -- as it has taken ours after 9/11.

I had a lovely reunion with Nathalie, Patrick, Louise and Elliott -- our friends from the Hutch -- at their lovely hideaway in Marseille.  Hard to imagine that this quiet and peaceful bit of land with its charming house, pool, garden and guest quarters can be found in France's second largest city.  Not only have the renovations of the Sudour's property produced stunning results since my last visit, the EU designation of Marseille as a major cultural city has generated incredible investment in the cultural and architectural heritage of this amazing place.

Fort St. Jean, Marseille

On Saturday, Nat and Pat and I visited the MuCEM, the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilizations.  It is housed in a completely renovated Fort St. Jean -- originally built by the crusaders -- at the Vieux Port (the old port).  Inside the confines of the fort is the new museum, a structure housed within a carapace that Nathalie describes as like lace, but that I've come to think of like the foam the tide washes up on the shore -- dentillated in an open and irregular pattern.  Inside this structure is the museum, and on the roof of the museum, sheltered from the heat and sun by the carapace, is an absolutely stunning courtyard with incredible views of the town and the Mediterranean.

There is also a great view from Fort St. Jean to the Romanesque Cathédrale de la Major, which is in Le Panier, the western side of the old port that was bombed badly during World War II because of its proximity to the industrial area of the city (sort of like the East End of London).

Vieux Port, Marseille

MuCEM

Cathédrale de la Major viewed from the new museum

Vallon des Auffes

We all gathered for lunch at a charming "resto" (French shorthand for restaurant), Chez Jeannot, in a tiny inlet called Le Vallon des Auffes just off the Corniche in the heart of the City .  I ate delicious little squid until I thought I would burst -- and then clambered over some rocks to hear "le rocher qui souffle," the whispering rock -- it does indeed blow air when the sea swirls in underneath.  And then there was an afternoon basketball game that Louise's team won.

On Sunday, we went to the wonderful Notre Dame de la Garde, which stands on the highest promontory in Marseille and has been guarding the city and its sailors for hundreds of years.  It is a beautiful Romanesque structure and recently cleaned inside so that the beautiful mosaics sparkle.   Most touching are the models of ships lost at sea that hang from the cathedral's ceiling.  Lloyd and I had visited there in a terrible mistral, one that almost blew us over.  The wind was blowing on this Sunday too, a reminder to me that Lloyd was again with us.  We lit candles and hugged and it was a nice way to include this wonderful part of our extended family in saying goodbye.

Interior of Notre Dame de la Garde

More pictures of this wonderful weekend will follow.  Elliott has all his mother's skill with a camera and took some wonderful photos that Nathalie has promised to send along.